With washy and matte strokes, Muholi portrays herself in allusive physical forms, referencing both Zulu legends and gender disidentification imagery. Still, it is the striking presence, involving an unretractable gaze that infiltrates the viewers’ attention, and which is intrusively compelling.
In Nirit’s oeuvre, identity and existence are two complex issues, both of which define the being of the Ethiopian-Jews. On the one hand, they are bound to Israel through their religion, and on the other hand affiliated to Ethiopia through their appearance.
Enos Nyamor on the Ethiopian-Israeli artist Nirit Takele
While Marcel Duchamp’s focus was on industrial objects, owing to the formalism and perfection of scale they represented, Kaloki turns to traditional African industry. And so the use of sisal ropes, in particular, is prominent. The sisal ropes are often hand woven and prepared in an intricate process that involves threading, weaving, and braiding, and which demonstrates the significance of pre-colonial industries that were disrupted with the onset of European imperialism and colonialism.
What makes the show spectacular is the originality and the experimentation with a mixture of materials. In particular, for the paintings, the artist used pieces of second-hand denim as the canvas. Employing impressionist style, with lucid and short brush strokes, the artist constantly shifts among popular faces, but his self-portrait, garnished with grandeur, is the center of most paintings.